All accessories included with the Breville Sous Chef are housed in a convenient plastic container. It can be stored flat or on its side to take up less counter space.

Why the Breville Sous Chef Food Processor?

Every Breville product begins with a simple moment of brilliance. The Breville Sous Chef began with the observation that the food comes in many different shapes and sizes, making it difficult for one machine to consistently cut all ingredients into the optimal size pieces. So how do you make sure that you get the perfect size for what you’re cooking?

The Breville Sous Chef solves this problem with its unique design. Its wide feed chute makes it possible to slice vegetables of all shapes and sizes, while numerous disc and blade options makes it easy to get perfect results, any way you slice it.

Combining Convenience and Versatility: the greatest sliced thing since bread

Food processors are supposed to make food prep easier, not more frustrating. The Breville Sous Chef has a 5.5” Super Wide Feed Chute that reduces the need to pre-cut most fruits & veggies, saving you time.

The Breville Sous Chef comes with a set of 8 discs and blades for numerous prep options, all housed in a convenient accessory storage. The discs include a variable slicing disc that can be set to 24 different slicing settings so you can customize the thickness of your slices from a paper thin 0.3mm all the way up to a thick 8.0mm. Other discs in the set include a julienne disc, a French fry cutting disc, a whisking disc, and a reversible shredding disc, while the blades include a micro-serrated universal S blade, a dough blade for kneading and combining ingredients, and a mini blade for use with mini-bowl.

The Breville Sous Chef includes two bowls, a large 16 cup processing bowl and a 2.5 cup mini processing bowl, for convenient processing no matter what size portions you’re chopping. The 16-cup option allows you to blend up large servings of soup or dough, while the mini processing bowl is perfect for processing small amounts of sauces or nuts.

Combining slicing options and two size choices with the convenience of the wide mouth chute, it is no wonder that the Breville Sous Chef was rated the best food processor in 2012 by a leading American reviewer of products.

Product Features

Small Food Pusher: for improved processing control of smaller ingredients. It also doubles as a measuring cup for adding/measuring ingredients. The food processor will run continually whether the small pusher is in or out

Large Food Pusher for pushing food down the feed chute. The food processor will not start unless the large pusher is in place correctly.

Feed Chute Safety System: prevents the motor from operating unless the bowl, lid and large food pusher are correctly locked in position.

Super Wide Feed Chute so large ingredients don’t have to be chopped before being fed into the food processor

Silicone Seal: reduces the chance of leakage while processing large volumes of liquid ingredients.

2015 Update: For anyone who is considering 14/16 cup food processors, I was given the opportunity to review the KitchenAid 14 cup model (KFP1466ER) this month and my review comparing that unit to this one and the Cuisinart has just gone up. Long story short, the short (1 year) warranty, the less powerful motor and the cheaper materials make the KitchenAid a less-than-desirable option even for the slightly lower price point now. Still use my Breville on an almost daily basis and still love it.

2014 Update: Breville – With time I have come to truly appreciate and enjoy my Breville food processor. It took me quite a lot of time to figure out how to process doughs with this machine. Initially it just beat them to death. Well, the not-so-difficult (to figure out) secret is to watch the temp of your liquids and to limit your processing time. (See comments for more details.) There also were quite a number of issues initially with processing cheeses. This issue has been totally resolved and the new manual gives clear instructions on how to effectively process cheeses. The Breville has now become my go-to food processor and I use it every day.

Cuisinart: About the only time I pull out the Cuisinart is if I have limited time to do clean up between processing or if I am traveling and need to bring a machine along. I don’t want to put my beloved Breville at risk (lol). The major issue I have with the Cusinart is the mold problem. I did get a replacement lid and was told (very firmly) that this was a one time thing. The design has not changed so, I am very cautious about clean up with it. I do not put it in the dishwasher and I try to dry every bit I can get to as soon as I can. I also have found that liquid and matter can get in the handle of the largest bowl through a small hole near the bowl opening. I have a small brush I use to get in to remove matter but I am concerned that mold will develop in that area over time. I really no longer can recommend this machine because of these issues.

2012 Year End Update: I continue to use and appreciate both the Breville food processor and the Cuisinart. I do reach for the Cuisinart more frequently than the Breville but that is mainly because I use it to make some sort of dough on an almost daily basis. Please see the comments section of this review for a discussion of the cheese grating issues and the resolution for the Breville Food Processor. (Kudos to the company for resolving this issue.) Also please note, I have added a Cleaning section to this review based on issues with the Cuisinart food processor lid.

Update:

Cuisinart – After 4 months of regular use I have to say that this has become my “go to” machine. I typically need to make some sort of dough with my meals and so I use the large bowl for my dough and then the smaller bowls for slicing and dicing. My only complaints about this machine are that sometimes there is spill over from the smaller bowls to the larger bowls when processing the food and I have to keep a hand on the machine when kneading larger amounts of dough because it gets to rumbling and grumbling all over the counter.

Breville – After repeated attempts at dough making with the Breville, I have concluded that it is simply not cut out for that sort of work. When I am making vegetable stock and need to chop up a lot of vegetables I do go with this machine because it is an absolute beast. I also like the french fry disc. I have also used the emulsifying disc and it is pretty effective but must be seated tight down on the base of the bowl or matter gets under the disc. My only other real complaint about this machine is that those little metal tips on the disc spindle and blades have burned me more times than I care to count, they get really hot and then tend to want to stick to the top of the lid when you pull it off.

After putting up with a prehistoric GE 7 cup food processor for decades I finally decided to empty my wallet and buy a 14 cup Cuisinart Elite Collection food processor* Cuisinart FP-14DC Elite Collection 14-Cup Food Processor, Die Cast. Then, a week later I was given the opportunity to review this food processor. Can you say “holiday time heaven”? I put both machines through their paces cooking Thanksgiving Dinner and have continued to use them on an almost daily basis to do everything from simple slice and dice to whip, puree and knead. They are both fine food processors, excelling in different areas. Here is a back-to-back comparison.

Appearance:

Breville – This is a beautiful machine, being sleek silver and coal black. The lid is a slide lock system and has a very wide feeding chute and a large food pusher with a smaller round pusher, (the small pusher is calibrated and can be…

Let me quote the owner’s manual for the Breville BFP800XL Sous Chef food processor (page 5, upper left hand corner):“Do not process cheese in the product. Use a hand held cheese grater for grating cheese. Processing cheese in the appliance will cause damage to plastic parts and will void your warranty.”

The story about it is all here:[…]

The short story is that AFTER releasing the food processor, Breville tested it and found that aggressively shredding a large wedge of Parmesan cheese can cause the machine to seize or push the shredding disc off balance. They immediately changed their manual to include the warning about voiding the warranty. They also began their redesign for the BFP800XL/A version to fix the problem, available in January 2013. What they didn’t do was include a statement about the coming fix for the problem in the packaging of the present model.

I had no idea there was a problem when I bought the food processor the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, to be given as a Christmas gift. Imagine my dismay when my wife open this gift and read that statement in the owner’s manual.

Owners of the BFP800XL can contact Breville to get a new shredding disc and lid to correct the problem.

I’ve been ogling this product for months and my husband surprised me with it! Have had it since mid-December and have to say that I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!!!!!!! Breville never disappoints!!!

We’re a household of two plus a dog and I use this just about every day. Meals around here were healthy before the sous chef, but now they’re even healthier because I can (and now want to, even after a hectic workday) chop, grate, slice, etc much faster with more fresh foods, portioned slices etc. I can focus on experimenting with flavors, finding creative new recipes etc rather than spending precious time with chopping, grating etc.

To date, I’ve tried all parts except the dough blade and emulsifying disc. The least used so far are the julienne and french fry/vegetable stick discs but the few times that I’ve used them, they’ve worked perfectly — all the same size, pretty, perfect! I plan on using them more.

The most often used:The grating disc’s coarse and fine sides are incredible. No residual pieces left on the blade! It is fast! Grated 6 pounds of zucchini in under 30 seconds, a pound of cheese in under 5 seconds. Too long a list–I grate food just to see it in action!

The slicing disc’s adjustable blade is AH-MAH-ZING! I’ve tried the ultra thin setting to the thickest and the slices are even and beautiful! (lemons, limes, tomatoes, mushrooms, strawberries…you name it! Maybe freeze really small berries first though).

The S blades chop like there’s no tomorrow! Be light on the pulsing – it’s fast! Purees come out beautifully. I’ve made ground beef, using this S blade – the texture of the burgers were spot on. And even made ice cream (a healthy version made out of frozen bananas), using the S blade. I use the small bowl to chop herbs, but most often use the larger bowl.

The product is easy and safe to use (blades are super sharp so be careful when handwashing). The appliance is not noisy at all. The up and down timer is a plus – something I love with Breville products. Cleanup is a breeze and the case that holds all of the blades and accessories is a bonus. The spatula and brush have come in really handy. The case remains on top of our fridge for easy access. I’d love to leave the base and bowl etc on the counter, but we need the counterspace, so it’s tucked away in a cabinet. It’s about 20 pounds and fairly easy to handle.

If you’re looking for a fast, hassle-free, easy to use, safe, dependable, and efficient food processor, THIS IS IT! It’s fully functional with beautiful results, is aesthetically pleasing to the eye and a well thought out product. Great for a household of two and even more fantastic when entertaining! You won’t be disappointed!! Absolutely amazing!!